At T-60, I made the long trek to the gate as it was a good 15 minutes at a leisurely pace. IST is ridiculously large and the only negative thing about it is that there are no movators.
Really getting my steps in 😀
Got to the gate and boarding was underway. Despite a J line, everything got bottleneck in the long tunnel leading to the tubes.
The chariot.
Spied the J class tube and ducked in.
My seat for the next 10-ish hours. Same one used by SQ for intra Asia flights on their 787’s and 350’s.
Cabin crew came by offering PDB’s and went with OJ this time – very tasty.
Menu’s were provided shortly after.
Aircraft pushed back on time and we eventually whooshed our way into the night sky
Meal service started an hour after take off. Started with the smoked turkey, cheeses and veggies.
Followed by the poached eggs with shakshuka which was ok
We flew into a nice sunrise and it was good just watching the flight via the tail cam.
3 hours before landing, the next meal service started. Started with a small amuse bouche.
Followed by a cart of appetizers to choose from.
Creamy Avocado soup
Grilled lamb chops – delicious!
Finishing off with the eclair and bread/butter pudding – very good.
Landing in MNL
Parked at our assigned gate
Immigration was quick – was 10th in line and after the formalities, made my way to baggage claim. The bag was already on the belt by there. Was picked up by friends for the 5 minute drive round the bend to the Sheraton. Always loved the decor, vibe and hospitality here versus the Marriott next door. The check in agent asked if I wanted to go to the lounge for the formalities but I declined as I just wanted to get to my room – was “upgraded” to the club floor but I didnt care as I just wanted to get in for a shower and sleep.
Comfy for one night.
After a semi decent sleep, I woke up to a wonderful view – the wow factor for me is the airport views.
To wrap up on my TK experience – I have heard good things about it and I will agree to a certain extent. I set my expectations low for anything business class these days and I was not disappointed but I was also not wow-ed compared to SQ and QR. The cabin crew were good, professional and smiling. The food and drinks were delicious and the lounge experience was better than most (I’m looking at your Air Canada). The seat on this leg is just terrible for a long haul flight and felt a little tight when compared to other airlines with better business class seat products.
Hooked On Points 